Diary of an Arcade Employee

Fear and Loathing in Las Ebay (Part Two)

The scene: Knee deep in article requests. Time: 8:45am. Mood: wired!

Day twelve of operation ‘you are now watching’ (6 Nes games)

Its the second day awake with no sleep but I’m not tired. My brain is in over drive and pumped up. I’m fuelled on a high octane sugar rush of which I have never seen the likes of before. Vision, blurred. Hands, trembling. My mind… my mind is a veritable smorgasbord of half thought out ideas and pictures that fly in and out of my subconscious but I’m focused. For what exactly, I don’t know yet, then… a knock at the door, then a ring. “who could this be?” I ask to no one in particular as I make my way to the door. I answer said door to a damp postman who mutters something about “rain” and “hippies” (it may not have been hippies) that I don’t quite catch because I’m too intrigued on the soggy parcel he places in my shaking hands. I must look like a junkie to this guy so try to fake normality and mutter my own unintelligible “rain” sentence. once back in my warm, dry haven I set to work on the overly packaged… package. I manage to tear a corner from this mobile fort Knox and instantly recognise the light grey plastic of a NES control pad “YESSSS” I shout and quickly silence myself, no one must know of the treasure I hold in my hand (sugar may keep me focused but it sure doesn’t keep me from being paranoid) I fetch My Nintendo Entertainment System from another room and snatch the hallowed game I’ve been trying to play for 12 days now, from its plinth (it may not have been a plinth, my memory is hazy at this point to say the least) and sit down in front of the TV. With the grey and red angelic controller in hand and after the 2nd attempt of turning on what the Japanese call the Famicom (and what I call Jeff… don’t ask) I relax. Soon my sweet, soon I shall feed you the world… But… Something is wrong… The console mocks me and just flashes on and off like some disturbed fairground ride, My brain notches another gear and tells my face what’s wrong… Seventy… two… pin… connector… NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! “Maybe its a mistake” I sob “maybe its just some dirt on the cart” (now im just kidding myself). One cue tip and cleaning fluid session later I realise it’s not going to work, I’m going to have to operate.

With the once beautiful grey case in pieces around me I stare in amazement at the MOS Technology 6502 core and end up looking at the business end of a Ricoh 2A07 (My console is the Pal version as opposed to the 2A03 in the NTSC version. I do prefer the 2A07 because it runs at a slower 1.66 MHz clock rate). “What is this magic of wires and circuitry?” I mumble. After staring at the chip board for 20 minutes the proverbial mist clears over my problem, the 72 pin connector. On closer inspection this behemoth conveys to me its fault. Dirty, corroded and bent pins gaze up at me like an injured bird chirping its mortal call of years or punishment. Then the terror rises up my body vocalises its self as the blood-curdling scream “I have no spare!!”. As the fit of sobbing and dry heaving leaves me I cradle the game I’ve been trying to play (for years it seams) and stroke the lifeless grey case. After straightening myself out my mind once again fixed in grim determination on a set goal I sit at my pc and delve (for the 3rd time in this farce) into the depths of my fear and loathing in Las Ebay.